DEARBORN, Mich. Jan 28 (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co's
fourth-quarter earnings beat Wall Street expectations and the
company reiterated a forecast that 2016 pretax profit would be
equal to or higher than last year.

But the company cautioned again that profit margins in its
North American business in 2016 may not equal the 10.2 percent
level achieved in 2015 and the stock was down 1.2 percent around
$11.70 late Thursday.

The automaker earned most of its money in the quarter and
for the full year in North America, where falling gasoline
prices have spurred demand for profitable large pickups,
including the Ford F-150 and Super Duty models.

Ford improved profits in Asia and in Europe, where the
automaker Ford turned a full-year profit for the first time
since 2011. However, a $295 million quarterly loss in Latin
America more than offset the $131 million fourth quarter profit
from European operations. Ford Chief Financial Officer Bob
Shanks said Thursday Brazil's economy will continue to contract.

Despite record profits for 2015, Ford shares have slumped
more than 15 percent since Jan. 1 through the close of trade on
Wednesday as analysts and investors have begun factoring in
fears that the U.S. and Chinese auto markets are headed for
slower growth, or possibly contraction, over the next several
years following a long boom.

Ford disappointed investors earlier this month with a 2016
profit outlook that called for pre-tax profits excluding special
items to be "equal to or greater than" the $10.8 billion
reported for 2015. Analysts had expected pre-tax profit of $11
billion for 2016, on average.
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